hinduism

One of the oldest religions in the world, Hinduism dates back to the time of the Indus Valley Civilization. Hinduism is also known as the Sanatana-Dharma which means eternal religion. It was in fact one of the earliest expression of historical Vedic religion. The beliefs and practices of the pre-classical era are called the historical Vedic religion. The present day version of the religion is said to have grown out of the Vedas, the oldest of them being the Rigveda. Thus Hinduism is also known as Vaidika-Dharma. Swami Vivekanand in his paper on Hinduism at the World Parliament of Religion said that “the Vedas are without beginning and with out end. They are an accumulated treasury of spiritual laws discovered by different persons at different times. They are laws that govern the spiritual relations between soul and soul and between individual spirits and the Father of all spirits.”
The laws that are prescribed in these scriptures are the spiritual experiences of the Rishis and sages. The focus of the Vedas worship is deities like Indra, Varuna and Agni.

Hinduism is the third largest religion after Christianity and Islam and has no one founder.
A diverse range of cultures, traditions and rituals slowly assimilated into this one tradition and evolved into the religion as it is known today.
The first Vice President of India and prominent theologian, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan once said about Hinduism that it is not "just a faith." He further suggested that it can not be defined, but is only to be experienced.

Dharma (duty), Samsara (The continuing cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth), Karma (action and subsequent reaction), Moksha (liberation from Samsara), and the various Yogas (practices) are some of the more major beliefs of Hinduism.

The scriptures of Hinduism are divided into Sruti (revealed) and Smriti (remembered). These texts include the Vedas, Upnishads, Tantras, Agamas, Puranas as well as the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. The scriptures talk about the theology, philosophy as well as the practice of Dharma.

There are 330,000 deities in this religion. They are avatars or incarnations of the Supreme Being or the ‘Brahman’. Hinduism gives its practitioner the freedom to choose a spiritual practice as well as a form of Brahman that is corresponding to his spiritual competence and that will satisfy his spiritual cravings. Thus the religion allows numerous gods.
These deities are characterized by a complexity of images and idols symbolizing divine powers.
The most important of all the gods are the trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva – creator, preserver and destroyer respectively. The other popular gods include Ganesha, Krishna, Rama, Hanuman, Lakshmi, Durga, Kali and Saraswati.

All the deities have their own particular vehicles or ‘vahan’ on which they travel. These are either birds or animals and represent the various forces that the gods signify. For example, goddess Saraswati is shown with a peacock as she the controller of the pursuit of performing arts. Lord Vishnu sits on the primal serpent which represents the desire of consciousness in humankind; Lord Shiva rides the Nandi Bull, which stands for the brute and blind power of man. Durga or Kali on other hand ride on the lion, which symbolizes mercilessness, anger and pride – vices she can help her devotes check. A mouse is Ganesha carrier that represents the timidity and nervousness, feelings that affect us when we start any new venture and he helps us overcome them.

The rituals in Hinduism vary from region to region, individual to individual. The common form of worship is to perform the puja at dawn after bathing either at home or at a temple. The ritual could include reciting from the scripture, singing hymns, chanting mantras, meditating, lighting the lamp and making offerings. One of the most important features of all rituals is the division between purity and pollution. Some degree of impurity is presupposed in the practitioner which must be overcome and is done usually with water.

The life-cycle rituals include Annaprashan, when a baby first takes in solid food, Upanayanam or sacred thread ceremony, which is usually done by upper-caste children as they are initiated into formal education and Shraadh which is the ritual of treating people to feasts in the name of the deceased. Marriage is usually conducted in consultation with astrologers who prescribe the right date and time. On death the bodies are cremated.